bear & lion

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felted soaps!

December 8, 2013 by mama lola

DIY, felted soaps, crafts, felt,

most people don’t use bars of soap anymore, because of the icky mess they leave behind. why most bath sets i’ve seen like this Gruffalo gift set use liquid soap nowadays. it certainly makes bath time with the kids less messy. though if you were looking for a way to make bath time more fun and creative then a bar of soap is definitely the way to go. and if you want to avoid the mess then a felted bar of soap is a wonderful way to do so. they are so fun for kids to make and they feel great using them at bath time! please note that you can do these with most soap types, so if you have a special soap product that you only ever use, be sure to repeat the instructions using the bar of soap of your choice.

MATERIALS:

  1. roving wool
  2. bars of soap
  3. cheese grater
  4. a bowl
  5. old pantyhose
  6. hot water source.

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. cover your soap in roving wool. you will need to be quite generous with how much wool you need. make sure the entire bar of soap is covered well.
  2. place your woolied bar of soap into a cut piece of pantyhose. you want the soap to be snug in the hose, so firmly tie knots at each eand.
  3. place your bundle in hot water and start rubbing. the friction with the warm water is what gets the felting process going. keep wetting your felt soap bundle in warm water and rubbing. depending on the size of your soap and how much wool you used this can take as little as 10 minutes or as much as 20 minutes.
  4. once you are satisfied with your felting, removed the pantyhose and place your soap to dry on a plate.
  5. if you want to make felt soap stones, take a regular bar of soap and grate down the corners, collecting the soap shreds into a bowl. once you are satisfied with the general shape of your soap stone, wet your hands and gently add the soap shavings to your soap bar. use warm water and gently rub the shavings into shape.
  6. then, go to step 1, by adding the roving wool and follow the rest of the directions as suggested.

roving wool comes in a rainbow of colours; i am working with black and white today.

DSC_0867b DSC_0869b DSC_0870b DSC_0875b DSC_0877b DSC_0880b

DIY, felted soaps, crafts felted sopas, diy, roving wool, crafts

when researching how to make felted soaps, i found the rhythm of the home shared a wonderful tutorial written by ginny. she shares wonderful pictures of her children making their won felted soaps! check it out HERE!

martha stewart was the one who inspired me to make the stone soaps. her tutorial is HERE.

have fun with this clean project!

xo, mama lola

Filed Under: christmas, fall crafts, gift idea, homemaker, winter crafts

« this moment.christmas cookie round-up! »

make your own pom poms!

December 3, 2013 by mama lola

pom poms, diy pom poms, how to make pom poms

look at these adorable pom poms i made. i will be using them as part of my gift wrapping this year, that’s why there are strings coming out  of them. i bought cheap, acrylic yarn, deciding lovely wool wasn’t worth it in the long run.

then i picked through pinterest and discovered several different ways of making pom poms. i tried out three.

 

FIRST METHOD: this is by far the fastest and most efficient way, in my opinion.

it’s from DIY queens

pompoms

 

SECOND METHOD: this one is best for tiny pom poms and is not my fave. but, it’s fun nonetheless.

get yer forks out! found this tutorial from small good things.

pompoms,diy pom poms, how to make pom poms

 

THIRD METHOD: this is the way my mum taught years and years ago. tried, tested and true, but more time consuming than the first method.

this tutorial comes from lark & linen.

diy pom poms, how to make pom poms, pom pom crafts

 

i didn’t find that one method made better pom poms over another. the key to a pretty pom pom is using lotsa yarn and making sure you trim it evenly at the end.

do you have a favourite method of making pom poms?

pom pom crafts, crafts, diy pom poms

xo, mama lola

Filed Under: christmas, holidays, she's crafty, special occasions, winter crafts

« december, the christmas month.it’s beginning to look a lot like christmas! »

DIY rubber stamps!

November 28, 2013 by mama lola

rubber stamps, eraser stamp, diy, stamps

i purchased some erasers on sale and decided to make some simple, festive stamps out of them. i’m hoping to make gift tags with them eventually.

aren’t they cute?

this is what i did…

with a pen i drew my design on the eraser. once i was satisfied, i used a small knife to cut out the design. *remember that whatever you cut away is permanently removed, and whatever is raised will show up in the print. in step 4 i kept testing the stamp to make sure i had cut away everything i wanted.

for the red prints in the above pics, is just used paint that i lightly brushed on. i didn’t want to buy a stamp pad! haha!

rubber stamps, eraser stamps, diy, stamps

my kids want to try and make their own stamps as well, so i told them we’d make potato stamps!

did you see my inspirational post about making your own stamps… check it out HERE.

xo, mama lola

Filed Under: christmas, fall crafts, she's crafty, spring crafts, summer crafts, winter crafts

« sickness.december, the christmas month. »

paper bag puppets!

November 21, 2013 by mama lola

this was a HIT as an after-school craft last week. i was watching a friends lovely ladies, so i had to come up with a craft that would interest kids from 3yrs to 7yrs. this was it!

bagpuppets 2

before i picked up the big kids from school, lion and i got all the supplies ready.

* brown paper bags

* glue

* feathers

* markers, pens, pencils

* pipe cleaners

* pom-poms

* googly eyes

* construction paper

* cotton balls

DSC_0428b

each kid chose something different to make; we had an alien, a kitty, a frog, a bird. it was so much fun. the older kids made more detailed puppets, and my three year old made a pretty simple frog, but it was still fun!

DSC_0430b

DSC_0432b

look at these wonderful paper bag puppets! we used cotton balls and small pom poms for eye balls, which i think were quit effective! pipe cleaners make wonderful antennas, or whatever!

lion gifted his frog to his mummo for her birthday, so i didn’t get a picture of it.

below is a silly, green alien!

DSC_0443b

this is bear’s cat. it has a red collar and a curly tail! fancy!

DSC_0647b

DSC_0655b

what kind of puppet will you make?

this is my bird. it’s eating a fish!

paper bag puppet 2

xo, mama lola

Filed Under: fall crafts, mothering, she's crafty, spring crafts, summer crafts, winter crafts

« fancy festive bow ties!this moment. »

fancy festive bow ties!

November 19, 2013 by mama lola

 

bowtie 3bmy boys have their own sense of style and love to look fancy.

they love to look handsome for birthday parties, weddings and christmas festivities are no different. so, this season i am again sewing new bow ties for my wee trend setters, which they will discover one december morning in their advent calender! see previous tutorial HERE.

this is such a quick n’ easy sewing project.

SUPPLIES:

* festive fabric of your choice

* scissors

* thread, needle

* iron

* elastic

INSTRUCTIONS:

* cut two rectangles, one bigger than the other.

* fold fabric in half with the patterns sides facing each other, sew around the edges, leaving an unstiched opening at the end.

* sew all the way around your rectangle, except for a small opening at the end. you need this opening to get your fabric right side out.

* cut the corners and then turn the rectangles right side out. mine look wrinkly, because it’s a tight squeeze through the small opening! a quick iron will that!

* sew up the openings by hand.

* this time i used a small scrap piece to cinch up the two rectangles to create the bow tie shape. before, i’ve sewn specific pieces for the centre for cinching. you can find those instructions HERE.

* cut and measure elastic band. loop through the back of the bow tie and then sew the wends together.

DSC_0400b
here are some examples of other bow  ties i have sewn for the boys. the top one is from bear’s 4th birthday. instead of making loot bags all the guests received a bow tie! the one on the middles is another x-mas bow tie and the purple one at the bottom is from a wedding the kids were in. now, my kids wear bow ties all the time; school pictures, just because or for looking fancy!

DSC_0424bb

and don’t forget, bow ties are not just for boys!

xo, mama lola

Filed Under: holidays, homemaker, love, sewing, special occasions, Uncategorized, winter crafts

« christmas bucket list!paper bag puppets! »

festive felt crafts!

November 16, 2013 by mama lola

 

felt is such a wonderful material to work with.
here is a festive felt collection of crafts, which will add a colourful touch of colour and warmth to any holiday home.

 

felt ornaments from fantastic toys
 
 
christmas trees from natural suburbia
 
 
twisted felt garland from purl bee
 
 
another holly garland from megan nielsen
 
 
felt pinecone, felt good from honeysuckle
 
 
make your own mistletoe from stay-at-home artist
 
 
half eaten gingerbread man from elsie marley
 
 
i must say that half eaten gingerbread man is hilarious and such a good idea!
 
xo, mama lola

Filed Under: christmas, holidays, she's crafty, special occasions, winter

« this moment : bear & lion part deuxchristmas bucket list! »

christmas crafts for kids!

November 12, 2013 by mama lola

christmas crafts, kids christmas crafts, paper crafts, reindeer crafts, santa claus crafts
 
 
tis the season again to make all sorts of adorable christmas crafts with the kids. i know my kids are ready to get their x-mas craft ON!!! they have both chosen their favourite crafts from this collection! There is a craft that has been recommended to me by other parents and that’s hand casting! They’ve had their children put their hands together in a casting pot and had a 3D (realistic) model of their hands come out, I think that sounds amazing, plus not only is it a craft, it’s also a great gift for a parent or grandparent, before you start though you’ve got to check out some casting tips first to make sure it goes off without a hitch, safety first! I’m seriously considering getting it done as a surpise for the other half.
 
 
kids christmas crafts, christmas tree crafts
paper christmas trees from ikat bag
 
 
christmas crafts, christmas tree crafts
christmas tree craft from our crafts n’ things
 
 
christmas crafts, kids crafts, santa claus crafts, paper plate crafts
kids craft paperplate santa from family ever after blog
 
 
santa mask, santa claus craft, kids christmas craft
santa mask from education.com
 
 
reindeer craft, reindeer crown craft, christmas crown
handprint reindeer hat from putti’s world
 
 
kids christmas craft, christmas toilet paper roll craft, reindeer craft
toilet roll reindeer from happy hooligans
 
 
winter craft, snowflake craft, christmas craft
button snowflakes from handmade beginnings
 
candy cane craft, christmas craft, button craft

button candy canes from ramblings of a crazy woman

 
time to go gather up some buttons, brown construction paper and cotton balls!
HAPPY CRAFTING!
xo, mama lola

Filed Under: christmas, crafts, holidays, she's crafty, winter, winter crafts

« preschool is fun or is it?!this moment : bear & lion part deux »

holiday garlands!

November 10, 2013 by mama lola


i  {LOVE}  garlands.
i love how you can make them out of everything and anything. you can decorate a plain wall, a festive table, a banister or a window. i love the combinations of textures, colours and patterns garlands can hold, and i love the simplicity of the garlands included in this collection.

 
 
felt ball garland from oh happy day
 
snowflake garland from nifty thrifty things
 
christmas tree garland from crafted
 
red and green DIY paper garland from so i don’t forget
 
recycled paper origami garland from home workshop.com
 
DIY vintage christmas garland from bueno vida
 
holiday holly garland from library of thoughts
 
felt christmas light garland from oh brady
 
i love all of these garlands so much! 
they are simple, but eye catching and fun to make!
which one is your favourite?
xo, mama lola

Filed Under: christmas, holidays, sewing, she's crafty, special occasions, winter, winter crafts

« this moment.preschool is fun or is it?! »

halloween fun!

November 4, 2013 by mama lola

we had a fantastic halloween this year! the kids were so psyched and everything seemed to fall into place perfectly!

lion decided he wanted to be a robot. so, he and i made him a simple costume out of a some vent-tube stuff from home depot, a cardboard box, a cereal box, spray paint, and various odds n’ ends we found at home. he loved his costume and i was so pleased with the way it turned out. 

bear wanted to be an astronaut. i had seen on pinterest several posts about how to make the jet pack out of empty pop bottles, but i wasn’t really sure how the rest of his costume was going to look like. but, thanks to a quick trip to the local thrift shop at the end of a dae night,  it too came together swimmingly! we found a super shiny vest and short set, which were perfect!



the boys had their own halloween parties at their school’s. that meant i had to do some creative back-n-forth driving to participate in both, but it all worked out, and i was so happy to join the fun!

after dinner it was time for the main event to get started : TRICK OR TREATING! with their boots on and their thrift store pum’kin buckets in hand, we headed on out. 

it was a dark and stormy night… no, for real. the downpour was ghastly, but making it worse was the incredible winds! i was holding onto the brolly with all my might and still it tried to fli inside out on me! but, the kids didn’t even notice that they were getting soggy!

once back home in our warm home, we all quickly changed into our pajama’s, made some tea and then checked out the mountain of candy. the kids received an enormous amount! maybe people were extra generous due to the weather, or maybe t’s cu they were just so darn cute, but whatever the reason the boys were delighted!

 


how was your halloween?

xo, mama lola

Filed Under: brothers, community, fall, fall crafts, halloween, mothering, she's crafty

« welcome, november.vegetarian thanksgiving menu! »

thanksgiving & fall crafts!

November 2, 2013 by mama lola

i thought i would put together another thanksgiving/ fall craft round-up.
thanksgiving is coming up, the colours are changing in the trees, so clearly fall has arrived!

 

check out these great projects!
 
recycled paper acorn banner from crafting a green world
 
 
felt acorn napkin rings from tikkido
 
 
 
leaf jar candle holder from kidz world
 
 
hanging leaf garland from full circle
 
 
woven placemats from mind bites
 
leaf masks from 5 orange potatoes

 

i really like the leaf garland and think we might make one, before we get overwhelmed with christmas crafts.  

i will try to squeeze out a few more fall crafts while i can!

xo, mama lola
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Filed Under: art, crafts, fall, fall crafts, homemaker, nature, she's crafty, special occasions

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WELCOME! i am mama lola and here is a peek into the highs and woes of our life. i like to share recipes, crafts and tell tales of my daily mothering struggles. stay a while, look around, leave a comment and make sure you become a follower!

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